France's Vivarte to offload three shoe brands

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PARIS, Nov 5 (Reuters) - French fashion group Vivarte said on Monday it plans to sell shoe brands Minelli, San Marina and Cosmoparis as part of an ongoing asset disposal programme aimed at cutting debt.

The three brands, with combined revenue of 270 million euros ($308 million), will be sold separately during the course of 2019, Vivarte said in a statement.

The disposal will allow Vivarte to focus on its two core clothing brands, La Halle and Caroll, which together account for most of the group’s 1.8 billion euros in sales.

The sale proceeds will also help fund 100 million euros in investment in La Halle over three years, and a further 10 million in Caroll to modernise stores and expand online.

The group, which faces competition from larger clothing chains such as H&M, Kiabi and Primark, has been restructuring its business.

Vivarte has already sold its Kookai, Naf Naf and Chevignon fashion labels as well as shoe brands Andre, Pataugas, Besson and Merkal. Its debt fell to 400 million euros from 574 million in the 2017-18 fiscal year.